Quantifying Correlations Between Winter Severity, Road Conditions, and VTrans\u27 Snow and Ice Control Activities: Final Report

Season-to-season variability in winter weather and the absence of quantifiable methods for measuring either winter severity or snow and ice control (SIC) performance have made planning and budgeting for SIC activities challenging. Recent research initiatives undertaken by VTrans and other snowbelt DOTs have established objective measures for weather severity and SIC effectiveness, creating the opportunity to quantify the relationships among winter severity, SIC costs, and SIC performance. For this project, the research team utilized these recently established severity measures and VTrans SIC cost data from the MATS database to develop a cost estimation tool that projects expected SIC costs for user-specified winter severity levels. This tool will support VTrans in making data-driven decisions about appropriate levels of investment in SIC for a given winter forecast and potentially improve SIC performance management by comparing current cost-effectiveness to that seen in the historical data. The algorithm used in the tool was based on the strong correlations between SIC costs and AWSSI at the Snow Region level. The tool can be used to estimate SIC cost statewide, regionally, by maintenance district, or by individual VTrans garage. To generate the cost estimates, the tool simulates 10,000 winter seasons matching the user\u27s specification and calculates SIC costs for each simulation

Liver-glycogen metabolism: A structural perspective

Liver glycogen, a highly branched glucose polymer, has a critical role in the maintenance of blood glucose homeostasis. Liver glycogen consists of glucose units that are attached to form linear chains via alpha-(1→4) linkages. These chains are connected via alpha-(1→6)-linked branch points to form highly branched glycogen “beta” particles (~20 nm in diameter) that can further join to form much larger “alpha” particles (~100-200 nm). Given the characteristically poor blood-glucose control associated with type 2 diabetes, a link between the structure/function relationships of liver glycogen and type 2 diabetes is probable. It is shown that diabetic (db/db) mice have an impaired ability to synthesize the large composite glycogen alpha particles present in normal, healthy mice and that alpha particles are held together via a bond more acid labile than normal glycosidic linkages, with the most likely bond being proteinaceous. The structure of healthy mouse liver glycogen over the diurnal cycle is characterized using size exclusion chromatography and transmission electron microscopy. Glycogen is observed to be initially formed as smaller beta particles, only being assembled into the larger alpha particles significantly after the time when glycogen content reaches a maximum. This pathway, impaired in diabetic animals, is likely to give optimal blood-glucose control, as explained by the particles’ surface area to volume ratio. Lack of this control may result from, or contribute to, the poor glycaemic regulation associated with diabetes. This discovery suggests novel approaches to diabetes management that promote alpha particle formation. Significant improvements in the extraction and characterization of liver glycogen has also been achieved, paving the way for future experiments exploring glycogen’s role in diabetes. Glycogen can now be effectively and rapidly extracted from formalin-fixed tissues using a novel technique, allowing the analysis of human tissue samples from pathology laboratories that routinely employ this method of fixation. The use of aqueous size exclusion chromatography has been shown to dramatically improve peak resolution when compared to the previously used dimethyl sulfoxide method, achieving separation of alpha-particle and beta-particle peaks. This allows for a more detailed and quantitative analysis and comparison between liver glycogen samples

Easyfig: a genome comparison visualizer

Summary: Easyfig is a Python application for creating linear comparison figures of multiple genomic loci with an easy-to-use graphical user interface. BLAST comparisons between multiple genomic regions, ranging from single genes to whole prokaryote chromosomes, can be generated, visualized and interactively coloured, enabling a rapid transition between analysis and the preparation of publication quality figures

A Survey of Top-Level Ontologies - to inform the ontological choices for a Foundation Data Model

The Centre for Digital Built Britain has been tasked through the Digital Framework Task Group to develop an Information Management Framework (IMF) to support the development of a National Digital Twin (NDT) as set out in “The Pathway to an Information Management Framework” (Hetherington, 2020). A key component of the IMF is a Foundation Data Model (FDM), built upon a top-level ontology (TLO), as a basis for ensuring consistent data across the NDT. This document captures the results collected from a broad survey of top-level ontologies, conducted by the IMF technical team. It focuses on the core ontological choices made in their foundations and the pragmatic engineering consequences these have on how the ontologies can be applied and further scaled. This document will provide the basis for discussions on a suitable TLO for the FDM. It is also expected that these top-level ontologies will provide a resource whose components can be harvested and adapted for inclusion in the FDM

Recovery of Minerales Monclova Minas V

Methane issuing from a roof-bolt hole ignited when the hot bit was withdrawn. Similar ignitions have occurred in other mines. This one differed in that flames spread quickly, coal was ignited, and, after three futile hours of applying inadequate water and extinguishing agents, the mine was sealed. Fires are fuel and ventilation controlled. In this mine there was an abundance of methane, coal, and wood lagging. Recovery of the mine, therefore, depended on successful control of its ventilation. The recovery was done without anyone suffering a scratch; a remarkable feat considering the abnormal methane outflows and concentrations, the continuing evidence of on-going thermal reactions, and what once were inexperienced but now amongst the best mine rescuemen

Expanding Access to Consumer Health Information: A Multi-Institutional Collaboration

A partnership between an academic library, a public library system, and an area health education center meet a critical information need in a rural region of southeast Georgia

Child abuse, child protection and disabled children : a review of recent research

This paper reports the results of a scoping study which reviewed research about child abuse, child protection and disabled children published in academic journals between 1996 - 2009. The review was conducted using a five stage method for scoping studies. Several studies have revealed a strong association between disability and child maltreatment, indicating that disabled children are significantly more likely to experience abuse than their non-disabled peers. Those with particular impairments are at increased risk. There is evidence that the interaction of age, gender and/or socio-cultural factors with impairment results in different patterns of abuse to those found among non-disabled children although the reasons for this require further examination. It appears that therapeutic services and criminal justice systems often fail to take account of disabled children's needs and heightened vulnerability. In Britain, little is known about what happens to disabled children who have been abused and how well safeguarding services address their needs. Very few studies have sought disabled children's own accounts of abuse or safeguarding. Considerable development is required, at both policy and practice level, to ensure that disabled children's right to protection is upheld. The paper concludes by identifying a number of aspects of the topic requiring further investigation